VRQA Guidelines for VET Providers

The VRQA Guidelines for VET Providers strengthen the quality of vocational education and training in Victoria. They address the gaps between Victoria's regulatory settings and national standards by including five key areas to provide for a nationally consistent approach to VET regulation:

Trainers, assessors and individuals working under supervisi​on must hold the relevant training and assessment qualifications.

Registered training organisations (RTOs) must have a written agreement with third parties they engage and notify us and relevant students of any such agreement.

RTOs are explicitly required to determine an appropriate amount of training for each student.

To deliver a training and assessment qualification, RTOs are required to have their assessment independently validated, and trainers are required to hold the appropriate training and assessment competencies.

RTOs are required to provide us with an annual declaration of compliance with the standards.

Third-party arrangements

The guidelines specify that if an RTO enters into a third-party agreement, it must notify the VRQA:

within 30 calendar days of the agreement, or prior to the obligations under the agreement taking effect, whichever occurs first

within 30 calendar days of the agreement coming to an end.

A third party is any party that provides services on behalf of the RTO but without a contract of employment between the RTO and its employee.

Services include training, assessment, related educational and support services and/or any activities related to the recruitment of prospective learners (brokering services). It does not include services such as student counselling, mediation or information and communications technology support.

A school-based RTO does not need to notify us of third-party arrangements if it is clustered with another school for VET delivery.

However, if a school has an auspicing arrangement in place, a third-party agreement is required.​

To notify us about third-party arrangements, complete Form F and send it by post to: